This invention relates generally to postage indicia, and more particularly to the application of postage indicia through the use of electromagnetic encoding of a mailpiece.
Postal authorities typically require that an amount of postage be paid for the processing of each mailpiece. Typically, and most often for individual personal use, the indication to the postal authority that the proper amount of postage has been paid is evidenced by the placement of a postage stamp on the actual mailpiece sent through the postal system. These postage stamps are sold in various denominations, and are typically applied to the mailpiece through an adhesive backing on the postage stamp. In this form, the postal authority requires a minimum amount of postage for a first class letter up to a certain weight, letters above which must include additional postage for proper processing.
To provide mailers with a more convenient method of evidencing postage the usage of postage meters has been authorized by the postal authority. While not in widespread usage among individual consumers, many businesses have acquired such postage meters to apply postage to the mailpieces sent therefrom. These postage meters print indicia as evidence of postage payment on the mailpieces themselves, or on adhesive labels which may be applied to the mailpieces to indicate to the postal authority that the proper amount of postage is affixed thereto. A benefit of the postage meters is that an exact amount of postage due for the processing of individual mailpieces of a particular weight may be dispensed by the postage meter, thus reducing the inclusion of excess postage on the individual mailpieces. This may result in a cost savings over the usage of traditional postage stamps.
A problem with the usage of conventional postage meters concerns the ability to counterfeit the postage impression. While certain information is contained in the postage indicia printed by the postage meter, such information can not necessarily ensure that counterfeiting of these indicia is not taking place. In an effort to curtail such counterfeiting, some postage meters utilize specially formulated inks when printing the indicia to inhibit the ability of postage counterfeiters from merely copying the printed indicia. However, these specially formulated inks are expensive, and have met with only limited success.
The postal authority has recently begun to allow use of a system of electronic postage purchasing, distribution, and printing, such system of electronic indicia based postage is conventionally known as the Information Based Indicia Program (IBIP). In brief, the IBIP system allows consumers to purchase and download postage from their PCs, and print a cryptographically-secured postal indicia on a mailpiece or adhesive label utilizing a standard computer printer. Various means of purchasing and downloading the postage have been proposed, including direct access via the Internet, through voice communication, via modem, smart card coding, etc.
IBIP is described in detail in the Information-Based Indicia Program Performance Criteria For Information-Based Indicia And Security Architecture For Open IBI Postage Metering Systems, published Mar. 11, 1999 by the United States Postal Service and available via the Internet at URL http://www.usps.gov/ibip/documents/specs/pcibi-625.pdf (the contents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety).
When information-based indicia systems are used, it is helpful to provide the indicia in a machine-readable format. One way to accomplish this is through the use of bar codes. Unfortunately, such a system results in postage indicia that diminishes the aesthetic appearance of the mailpiece itself. Further, the resulting large postage indicia takes up valuable real estate on the face of the mailpiece that otherwise could be used for personalized or advertising messages and graphics from the business enterprise. Such large indicia also requires the usage of an excess amount of printer ink which, for business enterprises which generate large volumes of mail, increases the cost.
Further, bar code technology, while greatly improved from its first introduction, still suffers from a number of problems which hamper the ability of the postal authorities to efficiently and rapidly determine the authenticity of the postage indicia. Given the volume of mailpieces which the postal authority processes each day, high speed sorting and reading machines are required. Unfortunately, many factors combine to reduce the rate at which bar code equipment can process mailpieces, leading to unnecessary and unacceptable delays in the processing of the mail. Moreover, the technology for scanning bar codes is expensive and not completely reliable. Further, any physical manipulation of the printed indicia, such as may result from dirt, smudges, and decreased resolution resulting from the use of colored or patterned envelopes significantly impacts the accuracy and bar code scanning.
It is therefore a need in the art to provide a system of applying postage indicia to mailpieces which does not rely upon visual bar coded data which relies on optical scanning system technology to read and process this indicia. Such a system is presented by the instant invention.
In view of the above it is an object of the instant invention to provide a new and improved system and method for indicating on a mailpiece that a proper amount of postage is associated therewith. It is an additional object of the instant invention to provide a new and improved system of verifying a proper amount of postage is affixed to a mailpiece. Additionally, it is an object of the instant invention to provide this system and method without the use of optical indications such as bar codes or other optical images which must be read using optical scanning technology. It is a further object of the instant invention to reduce the optical images required to be printed on a mailpiece to indicate proper postage so as to make available additional real estate on the face of a mailpiece for inclusion of advertising verbiage and images, as well as personal messages and graphics.
In view of these objects, it is a feature of the instant invention to provide proper indication of postage on a mailpiece via electromagnetic encoding. It is an additional feature of the instant invention that such encoding may be affixed to the mailpiece or may be incorporated as part of the mailpiece. It is a further feature of the instant invention that this method be accommodated on a mailpiece through specially manufactured envelopes having ferromagnetic fibers or other magnetic storage media embedded therein for retaining the electromagnetic postage information. Alternatively, it is the feature of the instant invention to provide adhesive labels which are capable of storing electromagnetic information which may be applied to a mailpiece.
Further, it is a feature of the instant invention to provide a postage meter which applies an electromagnetic information storage element onto a conventional mailpiece, and which further encodes the electromagnetic storage element with proper postage information without the use of bar codes. The electromagnetic information storage material may be in the form of ferromagnetic ink or other ferromagnetic liquid mixture which may be sprayed, rolled, or otherwise applied to a conventional mailpiece. Further, it is a feature of the instant invention that a mailpiece mailing label or envelope may be made with ferromagnetic powder integrated with the fibers or other material therein to produce a mailpiece label or envelope which is itself electromagnetically encodeable.
In view of these objects and features, it is an aspect of the instant invention that the physical size of the encoded indicia may be greatly reduced from the requirements of visual bar coding the same amount of data. It is a further aspect of the instant invention that a vastly greater amount of data may be included in the postage indicia without excluding real estate that may be used for advertising and personalized information and graphics. It is an additional aspect of the instant invention that the electromagnetically encoded indicia may be printed over with visual information without degradation of the postage indicia.
Other objects and advantages of the invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description when taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.